Disclaimer: Inuyasha is the intellectual property of Rumiko Takahashi.
Author's notes: Happy Halloween! sorry for the long absence and the short chapter update! life gets in the way. i've been animating full time this year and it's taken quite a huge chunk out of my personal and creative time. I've not given up on this story yet though so please continue to support me as you have! thank you for all reviews!
Midwinter's Day Dream
888
A person fears for his or her unjust work,
Telling a lie leads him or her to murk.
Virtuous qualities like truth and nonviolence
Bring a person peace, bliss and silence.
Kumarmani Mahakul
888
"You are seriously the biggest fucking idiot I've ever met, Sesshoumaru."
Resisting the incredible urge to roll his eyes and thus shed any trace of quiet dignity that he still held, Sesshoumaru did his best to ignore Inuyasha and resolutely stared ahead at the mirror, as a winter waif brushed through his silken locks and another braided wayward strands in a complex, haphazard looping that would be impossible to undo on his own. It was necessary though, the extra preening and dressing; it was his wedding day after all.
On the other side of the room, sitting atop fur coats strewn across a Summerland wicker chair, Inuyasha studied his older brother shrewdly. Even so far remote from all things winter-like - amongst foreign furnishings and unfamiliar lodgings - when Inuyasha was garbed in the royal outfit of their frozen home country, Sesshoumaru noted with a pang of nostalgia that his half-brother looked every bit like his late father the Ice King, Lord Inutaisho.
Many from the winter court had often showered Sesshoumaru with misplaced compliments of his looks, aligning them with the likeness of the late Demon Lord. But Sesshoumaru knew better. After many a grim meeting where he'd be forced to listen to all the dreaded misfortunes that the war thrust upon his constituents, Sesshoumaru would sit in the royal office alone and contemplate - with lost and imploring solemnity - the portrait of his father that hung on the marbled stone wall across his mahogany desk, as if the painting could offer the sage guidance the young royal desperately sought.
Glancing from his periphery at his brother's miniature reflection on the mirror, it was like Sesshoumaru were in the winter chamber sitting in front of the very same portrait; although rather than inspiring awe, the younger sibling awoke feelings of brotherly annoyance within Sesshoumaru instead.
"Out of all the batshit dumbass things you've done, this is easily top of the bullshit pyramid. Its fucking insane."
Sesshoumaru allowed the smallest of sighs. The barbed attacks against his intellect had been going on for quite a while now.
Inuyasha was one to be on a usual bad mood; but if his bloodshot eyes belied a long night spent sleepless, that thusly added to his already predisposed poor temperament. Sesshoumaru locked yellow eyes with warmer, rounder, younger ones, and attempted levity with a wry grin, though his heart was not in it. Sesshoumaru's mind was heavy with doubts as it was; listening to his little brother bitch about his lack of judgement (or "fuckhead behaviour", as Inuyasha would lovingly call it), was too much for even the usual stoic demon to handle so early in the morning.
"That is all a matter of perspective, little brother. Your suspicion of idiocy is another's claim to genius." It was a bluff response of course, but it was all Sesshoumaru had at the moment.
Perhaps Sesshoumaru was crazy. But he had to try.
Inuyasha rested his cheek against a closed fist thoughtfully, curiously quiet for a change.
"Do you trust her?" Inuyasha murmured darkly at last, catching Sesshoumaru by surprise. Mainly due to the fact that by making it a question and not a statement, Inuyasha came off deferential as opposed to hostile. This was not a brother casually asking for his sibling's opinion. The Winterlands Captain wanted to know what his King was thinking. A tricky thing, as Sesshoumaru was still hastily figuring that out himself.
"Trust is irrelevant, Inuyasha. Our two clans have been at war for so long that asking for that from either side is not only difficult but downright irresponsible." Sesshoumaru paused, a beat. "But to answer your question...I do trust her."
"Keh!" Inuyasha growled, annoyance rumbling back to the surface again, oddly setting the older sibling at ease. Pissy Inuyasha was something he was definitely more used to handling than one with emotional intellect.
"Well, I fucking don't. She'll kill you the first chance she gets, just like all those Summerling fiends. The moment you lower your guard around her, she'll gut you in your matrimony bed while you sleep, and I don't mean in the good way."
Sesshoumaru wrinkled his nose at the crude allusion, but said nothing. If Sesshoumaru were being truthful, the thought that Kagome might attempt an attack on his person had indeed crossed his mind. A shameful thought, as he found the girl to be of unusually genteel nature when it came to violence (Inuyasha, a winter delegate, was way more temperamental and violent-prone than the Summer Princess herself!).
But if for whatever reason, Kagome did decide to raise a weapon against him, Sesshoumaru had no idea what he would do in that regard. The thought of raising a weapon back against the tiny woman, even in self-defense, sent a chill through his abdomen. She was so small and fragile, he would easily overpower her in a struggle and…then what?
The memory of that second night, her slight body pinned underneath him, blue eyes glassy with fear and - shockingly - acceptance, cooled Sesshoumaru to his very core. If he truly fought back, the Summer Princess would stand no chance. He'd kill her.
The thought of her death scared him.
It scared Sesshoumaru even more than the knowledge that, if Kagome demanded his blood - or anything else from him - Sesshoumaru might concede without a fight.
But Inuyasha need not know that.
With a calm he did not feel, Sesshoumaru sought to relieve the young Captain of his worries. "It will not come to that, little brother."
"Tch. You're so fucking stubborn, just like our old man was…" Inuyasha need not finish the sentence for the sentiment to hang heavy between the two brothers. 'Look where that stubbornness got him.' were the words left unsaid.
Sesshoumaru stood from the bench and dismissed the waifs from the room, before they continued their listless attack on his hair. With a deep curtsy and a bow of their heads, the maidens were gone, leaving the two men alone in the quiet chamber. The Winter King took a turn about the room, drinking in his temporary sanctuary one final time.
The Summer Princess had spared no expense to accommodate her royal guest in a lush, extravagant bedroom fit for any noble, King or otherwise. The room was much too colorful and bright for his liking, displaying a Summerling penchant for ceramic tiles in orange terracotta and wooden furnishings covered in vivid emerald green cloth that harkened to the famed woods and plains that surrounded Vera Sol Castle. It was lovely, in a rustic kind of way, but a stark contrast to the glass and metal decor of his lodgings back in Tôr Hivern and Sesshoumaru could not help but marvel at the difference. Unfamiliar. Full of light. Warm.
Much like my future bride, he thought with grim amusement.
Sesshoumaru's gaze finished its quiet examination of the room, to land on his solemn little brother. Inuyasha huffed.
"You know, when you first told me you were going through with this, I didn't believe it. But look at you now, dressed to the icicles and about to marry a total stranger. You never cease to surprise me, Sess."
Sesshoumaru patted the younger man's shoulder fondly.
"A man likes to keep a few surprises up his sleeve, Inuyasha. Keeps his followers on their toes."
Inuyasha scoffed, chuckling despite himself. Then, "Are you going to tell your old lady?"
Though Sesshoumaru tried to mask it, Inuyasha still caught the tendon that jumped on his older brother's jaw at the mention of his mother, the late Queen.
Sesshoumaru played with the cuffs of his sleeves, pretending to preen so as to keep his surprise in check. "No need. She has no say in this matter, for I am the King. I need permission from nobody to do as I please, let alone my own mother." Feigning nonchalance, Sesshoumaru shrugged. "Besides, she'll find out eventually."
Inuyasha stared at him with a mixture of impressed terror.
"You really think she's gonna take it well hearing it from everybody else but you?"
"She will get over it."
"Alright, if you say so."
"I do say so."
Inuyasha shook his head in resignation, as if to say 'This crazy bastard', but thankfully did not push the matter. Inuyasha stretched theatrically, mouth stretched wide over elongated fangs, dog ears pressed tightly to his skull.
"Al right then, I need to head back. Gotta triple-check that our security protocols are in place and make sure everything is running smoothly with General Sango's team."
Sesshoumaru raised a questioning eyebrow at the formality. Inuyasha rarely extended titles to others.
The young Captain shrugged, a tell-tale blush on the tip of his nose, before heading towards the exit. Almost out the door, Inuyasha paused and looked back towards his king.
"I love you, Sess." Inuyasha said plainly, and despite his usual gruffness with displays of affection, Sesshoumaru was touched by the uncommon words. "But," Inuyasha continued, "you're a grown-ass man. And the King, for fuck's sake. Nobody can tell you what to do except yourself. And if this is what you want, I'll do my fucking best to support you, bro."
With that, Inuyasha left the room with a loud click that reeked of finality, and Sesshoumaru did his best to ignore the weight in his chest.